At This Time
by friendrat
Summary: Our heroes flee Florin Castle after rescuing Buttercup, but will they reach the safety of the pirate ship Revenge on time?


The old grandfather walked away from the boy's room and down the hall. He glanced down at the book he held and smiled. His grandson had fallen in love with the book that he himself had loved so much as a child.

For a brief instant a frown crossed his face, and he wondered if he should have finished the story. Thinking back to the passage detailing Buttercup's dream and the boy's reaction, he shook his head slightly. No, it was better that, for now, the boy believe it ended with the kiss. "It's not fair." That's what the boy had said. No, it wasn't, but then, life rarely is.

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Wesley, Buttercup, Inigo, and Fezzik rode hard and fast from the capital of Florin. Wesley knew that Humperdink would not take the insult lightly, and wanted to have Buttercup as far from him as possible when he was found and released.

They rode for Florin Channel, where they would take a boat across the Bay of Shrieking Eels to Guilder. There they would find a priest to marry Wesley and Buttercup, before meeting up with the Revenge where she was still anchored at the far end of the fire swamp.

The sun had risen red that morning, and the sailor in Wesley worried about crossing the bay when a storm was brewing, but they had little choice. If they didn't sail while they could, Humperdinck's men would catch them before they could reach the safety of Guilder. The thought scared Wesley more than he'd care to admit. If that happened Inigo and Fezzik would be executed outright for their part in Buttercup's rescue, and he'd be returned to the Pit of Despair to be tortured. Truth be told, that wasn't the part that scared him. While extremely unpleasant, he could cope with torture. No, it was what Humperdinck would do to Buttercup that scared him. Humperdinck may be a coward, but he was also vengeful and had a black heart. Wesley was sure that if the other man caught them, Buttercup would be forced to watch the executions and torture, before she was raped and tortured herself. Wesley thought back to the Pit of Despair, and remembered seeing a pear of anguish among the various torture devices. He shivered at the thought. No, he wouldn't allow that to happen. He would risk sailing through the brewing storm, for Buttercup's sake.

By the time the riders reached the channel, the sky was dark and threatening, and they could hear the storm in the distance. No one wanted to accompany them across the Bay in weather like this, and they couldn't wait, so rather than barter for passage across, they had to buy a boat outright. Wesley cursed the fact that his boat was still moored across the Bay at the Cliffs of Insanity, but it couldn't be helped.

After buying the boat, they set out immediately. Wesley warned Buttercup that there would be no smooth sailing this time, and to stay in the little cabin.

They sailed for hours in the storm. The rain was blinding, and the wind was creating waves larger than any ever before seen in the Bay. They were turned around more than once, and even Wesley admitted he was completely lost until the storm passed.

And that was when they found the eye of the storm. It was peaceful in the eye, the wind and waves were manageable, and the three men were relieved to finally be able to breath easy for a few moments. In the stillness Buttercup ventured from the safety of the cabin, and fell into the safety of Wesley's arms.

A moment passed, and Wesley found himself wishing the whole ordeal was over, so he could hold her and never have to let go. The moment ended when Wesley felt his sailor instinct tell him something was wrong. Looking up he realised what it was. Two waves, just big enough to trouble the little boat were headed their way. He quickly pushed Buttercup towards the mast, and she instinctively grabbed it, holding on tight.

Wesley was still off balance when the first wave hit, sending him against the rail, and before he could recover, the second wave sent him overboard. The last thing he saw before blackness overtook him was that Buttercup was safe.

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Buttercup's eyes widened in horror as she watched Wesley go overboard. She rushed from the mast to the rail Wesley had just vanished from, calling his name. She was quickly joined by Fezzik and Inigo. A few moments later Wesley surfaced a short distance from the boat. He was floating unconscious in the dark water. Buttercup let out a sigh of relief that turned into a gasp of horror as a familiar sound entered her ears.

The sound took the three people on the boat back to another night, on another boat, and another figure in the water. "Do you know what that sound is, Highness? Those are the shrieking eels. Don't believe me? Just wait, they always grow louder when they're about to feed on human flesh!" The words played through Buttercup's mind as the sounds of the eels grew louder, and before anyone could stop her, she dived into the water and swam towards Wesley.

Buttercup's only thought was to save Wesley as he had saved her so many times before. The shrieking sound of the eels peaked, and just as she reached out to grab Wesley he suddenly disappeared beneath the water. She quickly dived down after him, but before she could find him she felt something wrap around her ankle and drag her further down.

Her lungs began to burn, but no matter how hard she struggled, she couldn't escape the eel that had her ankle. Her last thought before she too was embraced by darkness was a voice from her past, "Death cannot stop true love, all it can do is delay it."

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The two men left standing on the boat watched in horror, unable to help, as their friends were dragged under. Moments later the water turned red, and they knew it was over.

The storm passed, as they stood in silence to honor their fallen friends. Slowly the clouds parted, and the last light of day gave way to the first stars of twilight.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the giant turned to the Spaniard. "What now?"

Inigo looked thoughtful for a moment. "We go to the Revenge. The man in black named me the Dread Pirate Roberts before he died, and I will honor him by living up to it. Now we just have to convince a crew."

Fezzik looked at his friend and nodded, "True."


End file.
